This Week's Challenge - NOT EATING OUT

Budgeting $100 a week for food is tough.  Especially when, like our family, you can't imagine your week going by without at least one trip to Starbucks.  Or Panera.  Or a quick drive through Dunkin' Donuts.  Or just one milkshake at Steak'n'Shake.  Or (and I'm a bit embarrassed to admit it) McDonalds.

Part of me thought that it would be an easy transition - $100/week, cold turkey.  No worries.  It actually worked for the first week I tried it.  I even had $5 left over.  Wow!

But then, the next week came, and the pantry supplies had dwindled and there were a lot of errands on my to-do list...  Not that I'm making excuses.  I'm simply sharing those hurdles which I am going to have to overcome, one by one.

SO - our challenge for this week is [drumroll...]:

NOT EATING OUT (out out out)!!!

We've made a pact as a family to not do it - to eat only food that we've prepared at home - no quick trips anywhere - coffee with cream from home.  Breakfast at home.  Lunch at home.  Snacks at home.  Dinners at home.

I'll be posting recipes to let you know how this goes!

So far, we've made a big pot of beans and a big pot of rice, which we've eaten whenever we get hungry.  We've a bag of frozen chicken in the freezer, and assorted greens in the fridge...  We'll see what creative things we come up with!